Q1 2022 Civic Action E-News
Q1 2022 Civic Action E-News: Council leaders meet with Georgia gubernatorial candidate and Alabama politicians; Right-to-work amendment on Tennessee ballot; Rule unjustly burdening unions overturned; and more
Georgia bill would help protect workers from misclassification, loss of benefits
A bill in the Georgia House of Representatives would change the definition of “employment” to include “services performed by an individual for wages” unless the individual is free from control or direction over the performance of such services.
Re-vote begins at Alabama Amazon warehouse
Workers at a Bessemer, Alabama, Amazon warehouse are voting for a second time in less than a year on whether to join a union. If they vote in favor this time, the Bessemer facility will be the first unionized Amazon warehouse in the United States.
President signs executive order requiring union agreements on large federal construction projects
President Joe Biden signed an executive order Feb. 4 requiring project labor agreements on federal construction projects that cost more than $35 million. Project labor agreements are collective bargaining agreements between building trade unions and contractors that determine wages, employment conditions, and dispute-resolution processes.
Southeast Carpenters help pass law clamping down on contractor non-payment of workers’ compensation premiums
A law enacted in Tennessee last year with the help of the Southeast Carpenters Regional Council will make it tougher for unethical contractors to get away with not paying workers’ compensation insurance premiums.
OLMS rescinds Trump administration rule that unjustly burdened unions
The Office of Labor-Management Standards has rescinded a Trump-administration rule that imposed unjustified and burdensome paperwork requirements on labor unions.
NBC Nightly News: Unpaid construction workers go hungry while others profit
Focusing on a case that began in Iowa with the North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters giving aid to six construction workers who were starving, NBC Nightly News broadcast a special segment on wage theft in the construction industry.
Council EST and political director discuss labor issues with Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams
In a meeting with Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams on Jan. 31, SSMRC leaders discussed labor issues including visa-program abuses, project labor agreements, and tax and workers’ compensation fraud by unscrupulous contractors.
See county-level information on projects the American Rescue Plan Act is funding
A provision of the American Rescue Plan Act allocated $65.1 billion to every county in the United States. According to the National Association of Counties, this funding is providing “direct, flexible aid.”
U.S. Congress considering legislation that would reduce costs for working families, invest in union apprenticeships and rural communities
Efforts continue in the U.S. Congress to pass Build Back Better legislation that would assist working families with child- and elder-care costs, reduce health-care costs, housing, and education costs, and invest in union apprenticeships, rural communities, and union-built clean-energy projects including wind-turbine installation.